Discovering Hanoi

Hanoi was the first stop on our four month trip through Asia and we completely fell in love! The rambling streets of the Old Quarter, packed with pho carts and motorcycles, are made for wandering and getting lost. When we travel, we do everything we can to immerse ourselves in local culture. We started each day with pho on the street for breakfast along with all the businessmen headed off to work. These were some of the most memorable and authentic meals of our entire trip! We explored the Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first university, with its incredible architecture and history. But mostly we learned what it meant to dodge traffic as we navigated the scooter-filled streets of the city, preparing us for the chaos of the rest of our travels!

From Hanoi we visited Ha Long Bay for two days, exploring Cat Ba Island and waking up on a boat in the bay to complete fog cover. It was magical, to say the least, and everything I had dreamed of for years before we arrived.

Pho on the street, Vietnamese coffee in the business district (where it’s strongest!), the Temple of Literature and easy access to Ha Long Bay

Make sure to try the street food!

Ashley Kelemen is a fine art wedding & travel photographer based in Southern California. She has a passion for film, scuba diving and big adventures. Follow along over the coming weeks as we share her 4-month jaunt around Southeast Asia on Entouriste!